The Benefits of Fanfiction- Essay
by FaultyPasta
Summary: Writing fanfiction mixes enthusiasm, practice, and community, in a way that is wholly beneficial for a young writer. Not only can fanfiction do what the education system cannot in teaching how to write effectively, it can go even farther in allowing young people to access their creativity and passion for writing.
FaultyPasta

The Benefits of Fanfiction

Writing fanfiction mixes enthusiasm, practice, and community, in a way that is wholly beneficial for a young writer. Not only can fanfiction do what the education system cannot in teaching how to write effectively, it can go even farther in allowing young people to access their creativity and passion for writing.

English Language Arts teaches vocabulary, grammar, and speaking with the goal that students will gain the ability to properly comprehend and respond to literary material. It is every ELA teacher's dream for their students to do so spontaneously, personally, and voluntarily. Fanfiction is fans channeling their enthusiasm and writing their own stories based on the works presented to them for themselves and for others. Virginia Tech's _Alan Review_ written by Kerri L. Mathew and Devon Christopher Adams says that in writing fanfiction, "today's youth are not only more effectively engaging with texts they enjoy, but they are also repetitively recognizing and using archetypes and motifs that have been utilized in canonical literature for centuries." Thus it is obvious that through fanfiction students and young adults are not only voluntarily fulfilling the goals of every good ELA teacher, but also furthering their own writing abilities.

Being able to convey one's thoughts on paper clearly and effectively, is absolutely vital, whether in school or in life beyond. One's writing is something that evolves with time, and even more so with experience. According to Fanfiction author, StarkBlack, "The only way–and I mean the ONLY WAY – to get better at writing, is just write more." This is a point that can be seen very clearly by anyone. All it takes is a quick look to an old writing assignment, a pride filled first story or childhood journal to see how incredible practice is.

Candie Syphrit Kington is an avid reader and writer of fanfiction and a teacher of college-level anthropology. She has published a journal studying fans and fandom, and is active on _Archive of Our Own_ , an online non-profit archive for transformative fanworks like fanfiction.

"The act of writing fanfiction is a great practice for aspiring writer and for those who are simply trying to learn and practice the use of the English language and storytelling methods…It provides practice in forming sentences, in using grammar, in looking at word choice, and in translating thoughts from one's head to paper, even if the paper is digital. These are skills that are necessary in both education and in life. Effective communication is important and fanfiction does provide practice in effectively communicating, even if what is being communicated is trivial fiction."

Everyone has to write in school, but the best kind of practice is taken up voluntarily. Students are more likely to go the extra mile and strive to be better when personally invested. In her book _Teaching Adolescent Writers,_ Kelly Gallagher says, "They [students] have had years of writing tasks thrust upon them- writing tasks they often find uninteresting and irrelevant" Because of this, "students often see writing as just another painful obstacle they must overcome to earn a diploma" (Gallagher). Fanfiction is different in that it is completely of the writer's free will. They are free from standardized assignments with requirements and constant assessment. When properly motivated these students will strive for their own sake to write the best they can. According to fanfiction author, Cardboard Bike, fanfiction "gives instant gratification (in the form of reviews and favourites) and because of that one might have more motivation to put pen to paper, which is always a good thing."

Another factor that makes fanfiction so beneficial is that it is, for the most part, entirely separate from school. "While school assists in correcting sentence structure and diction and all of the technicalities that provide adequate writing, fanfiction gives writers a chance to creatively use their time in order to write about something they love. In that process, they learn what people respond well to and what they don't" (FaiKazahaya).

Herein lies two of the problems posed by school. Firstly, school teaches the conventions of writing, but another very important part of writing is the response of the readers. Very few, especially new and inexperienced writers, can analyze their own work objectivity. This is precisely why a supportive community is so important. The second problem is the unavailability of this community in school. Victoria Hanley, a novelist, published _Seize the Story: A Handbook for Teens Who Like to Write,_ and in it spoke of the importance of finding and using criticism to polish your writing, specifically doing so in a classroom.

"School classrooms have variables beyond your control. Sometimes you get an outstanding teacher and a group of students who set a supportive atmosphere. Under those conditions, sharing your writing can boost your inspirations and help you grow as a writer much faster than you could on your own. On the other hand, sometimes you find yourself in a class where the teacher doles out harsh criticism or some of the students like to sneer. In a situation like that, there's no reason to risk sharing a piece of writing that reveals your innermost thoughts and feelings."

As being able to get good feedback is so important, one has to find people who will read their work and give in return genuine constructive criticism. For people who find themselves without friends, classmates, or teachers, from which they can receive this feedback the Fanfiction community is perfect.

Fanfiction not only teaches what connects with people and what they respond to, but it also provides a community in which young writers can share their writing freely and receive in return advice and encouragement. Online fanfiction allows for communication between writer and author that is completely different from any other community.

Authors almost always ask for comments and suggestions for their stories, and in return readers, who are often young writers as well, share support and advice. Readers and authors, through comments and reviews, give each other Concrit (Constructive Criticism) and commend each other for their work, for example, the Kudos system on Archive of Our Own. Roles such as beta readers have emerged specifically for the purpose of checking stories for spelling, grammar, cohesiveness, flow, plot holes, characterization, as well as other factors. Online, young writers can hold critical and informative discussions concerning writing on a level far more mature and beyond what can be achieved in a classroom.

The online fanfiction author, Fai Kazahaya bases her stories largely on the responses she gets from readers. "That's the sole reason I write fanfiction. For the reviews and comments that tell me what I'm doing right and what I'm doing wrong in a story" Her longest story, _Gwillym,_ has received 391 reviews and 190 favorites on and 27 comments and 179 Kudos on Archive of Our Own. "That was the true reason behind my success with that story. I waited until my readers were hooked on the simple idea… From there, I let the reviews of the readers guide my inspiration. Without that, Gwillym could have died at that first chapter. Unfinished" (FaiKazahaya).

The biggest difference between the fanfiction community's feedback and school's feedback is anonymity. In fanfiction, anonymity protects the writer in a way that can't be accomplished in school. "Students will inevitably have prior knowledge of each other's interests and there are small background things included in stories that can give away information about the author" (Kington).

The anonymity of fanfiction has allowed for the community to develop incredible tolerance and acceptance rarely found anywhere else. One can write freely and openly and for the most part expect to receive in return genuine and accepting reviews. This sort of unbiased review is one of the biggest advantages of the fanfiction community. This anonymity gives freedom from constant grading and assessment, as well as judgement from people of everyday life. As not everyone we deal with in life is this accepting and many young authors are intimidated by the idea of sharing their work and being rejected.

Zombified419 is an author who understands the difference between anonymous fanfiction and the fear that can come with revealing your works to people you know. "We run that risk taking the steps into full on publication, only instead of an off-handed comment that could be deleted, you've now got the personal rejection of someone whose opinion meant the world to you… Perhaps, should the pages be well received, the author could share themselves if they wished, but just the idea of me doing something like that at that age literally gave me panic attacks."

Young people have the freedom to write about absolutely anything they want. Young writers can share their analysis of characters and plots, their opinions and ruminations freely and enthusiastically without fear to a community that is capable of fully appreciating it. Thanks to this anonymity fanfiction can be found that is so incredibly profound it rivals that of any professional.

Hanley continued on to say, "It's excruciating to pour your heart and soul into a story and then get slammed. But it's exhilarating and motivating to find people who truly care about characters and how how to give helpful critique." That is essentially what writing fanfiction is all about. Taking fans' enthusiasm and adding to it practice and a supportive community. In this way it's only natural that fanfiction is beneficial to young writers.

Works Cited

Cardboard Bike. Personal Interview. 10 Mar. 2016.

FaiKazahaya. Personal Interview. 24 Feb. 2016.

Gallagher, Kelly. _Teaching Adolescent Writers_. Portland, Me: Stenhouse, 2006. Print.

Hanley, Victoria. _Seize the Story: A Handbook for Teens Who like to Write_. Fort Collins, CO: Cottonwood, 2008. Print.

Kington, Candie Syphrit. "Covarla ." Message to the author. 3 Mar. 2016. E-mail.

Mathew, Kerri L., and Devon Christopher Adams. "I Love Your Book, But I Love My

Version More: Fanfiction ..." The ALAN Review. Virginia Tech, 2009. Web. 12 Mar. 2016.

StarkBlack. Personal Interview. 28 Feb. 2016.

Zombified. Personal Interview. 16 Mar. 2016.

 **I couldn't have written this paper without the help of multiple people here on . Many of their responses didn't make it onto this draft of the paper but I intend to revisit this later in the year, likely after school ends when I have more time. As it is its a frikkin mess so I'll definitely rewrite quite a bit of it later.**

 **Special thanks to FaiKazahaya, Santana2, zombified419, Gryvon, Cardboard Bike, Littlerose94, , and StarkBlack.**

 **Also please share any opinions or points you think I missed in this. I definitely need a bit more content in there so I'd be a big help.**


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